The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is under fire from fans following the release of its 2025-26 men’s basketball schedule. For the first time since 1919, the legendary in-state rivalry between North Carolina (UNC) and NC State will not feature a home game in Chapel Hill.
The decision, driven by the ACC’s new rotating schedule to accommodate conference expansion, has sparked outrage on social media platforms like Reddit. Here, fans argue that the league is sacrificing its Passion for Payouts, leaving a bitter taste in the mouths of Tar Heel and Wolfpack fans.
ACC Sidelined UNC-NC State Match Enraging Fans
The UNC-NC State rivalry is a big event in college basketball. The two schools have played each other twice annually since the ACC’s inception in 1953. This tradition traces back to 1919, when the teams began their home-and-home series.
However, the ACC’s new scheduling model, designed to balance a now 18-team conference following the addition of Cal, Stanford, and SMU, has disrupted this historic matchup. A Reddit post by user u/TrustInRoy on r/CollegeBasketball reported the news with the caption, “UNC won’t host NC State for the first time since 1919.” The post continued, “They should just rename the conference because this isn’t the ACC anymore.”
The new format assigns each team three “fixed” opponents for home-and-home games, with the remaining 14 games rotating among other conference foes. NC State will host UNC and Duke but won’t travel to Chapel Hill, while UNC will play Syracuse twice.
“Shameful,” one Reddit commenter wrote. “There is absolutely no way that North Carolina playing Syracuse twice and NC State playing Virginia twice is a better option than pairing Syracuse with Virginia.” Another added, “This is lame. Shouldn’t break up in-state rivalries built over decades. UNC, Duke, State, and Wake should all play home/home.”
The backlash showed the apparent frustration with the ACC’s priorities. Fans on X echoed the sentiment, with @HeelToTheDome calling the decision “a legitimate travesty to both schools and the ACC.”
This is a legitimate travesty to both schools and the ACC. I know there’s a lot of animosity amongst us fanbases but think both sides would agree they enjoy playing each other twice a season. It’s a shame what college athletics has become https://t.co/hgJD8qc9va
— Ian Ebert (@HeelToTheDome) May 28, 2025
The scheduling change comes from the ACC’s efforts to maximize NCAA Tournament bids, in response to last season’s criticism when only five ACC teams made the 2025 tournament despite strong performances from NC State (Final Four) and UNC (Sweet 16). The new format prioritizes non-conference games and spreads marquee matchups to boost strength-of-schedule metrics.
However, fans see this as a betrayal of tradition for profit. “The part that bothers me the most is this wasn’t years in the making but was decided and implemented in at most a few months as a knee-jerk reaction to getting fewer teams in the tournament,” a Reddit user commented.
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The sidelining of the UNC-NC State home-and-home series is a microcosm of college sports’ evolving landscape. While the ACC aims to boost its national profile, the cost alienates fans who cherish rivalries that define the sport.
The single matchup in Raleigh this season may still deliver some thrill, especially with NC State’s DJ Burns Jr. and UNC’s RJ Davis set for one of their best years, but the absence of a Chapel Hill clash will sting the basketball purists.
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